Organizations Struggle to Build Customer Loyalty

Relationship Doctor Two-thirds of executives expect to implement a new approach this year to rejuvenate customer relationships, but 52% of non-execs will stick to a "business as usual" model.

Technology has empowered customers with more information than ever—for better and worse. While they can call up your company's products and services with a single click, they can do the same for virtually every one of your competitors. And if they're weighing options, they can access plenty of information about comparative features and service quality through online reviews, and get additional input from their social-media networks. This means that a small minority of consumers indicate that they feel a sense of loyalty to any one brand anymore, according to recent survey research from inContact. Among other preferences, customers say they would favor companies that offer a broad range of ways to stay connected with service reps and receive updates on promotions, product updates and other relevant information. A separate survey from Strativity Group Inc. reports that there's a gap of expectations between executives and non-executives when it comes to what exactly their organizations will do in 2013 to improve customer-loyalty efforts. Essentially, this means the best-laid plans from the senior level aren't exactly getting the proper "follow through" from those who deal hands-on with customers. Nearly 2,200 U.S. consumers participated in the inContact research, which was conducted by Harris Interactive, and more than 400 executives and non-executives primarily from the U.S. and the U.K. participated in the Strativity research.